Dear
James,
When
I read your article A Fall From Grace I
deeply resonated with the frustration and pain the Christian religion has
caused you. I too have had a two year relationship ended because of Christian
misperceptions of sexuality and marriage. I have also had close Christian
friends attack me for dating outside of my faith. On a deeper level, this is a misunderstanding
of the most fundamental Christian principle: Grace.
And
James I think you are closer to this then I have ever seen you. Your
realization of Christianity’s corrupted “anthropocentric belief system” is a
profound one. You see Christianity is never meant to be centrally about us, but
about God and what he does for us. The mantra of mature evolutionists that we
stop seeing ourselves as “special” but should work towards cooperative and
communal adaptation with nature is a strong one. It is also not as far away from the
Christian tradition as you might think. The central tenet of Christianity is not
meant to be about us fulfilling a "divine mission" but is most centrally about a shepherd who would sacrifice his life for one
lost sheep. It is most centrally about a God
who chooses an obstinate and ever failing nation and refuses to abandon them,
in spite of their ignorance and betrayal. This is a God who suffers for us and
therefore understands our suffering; all of us; humans, lions, and lambs.
The central goal of the human ideal is not our
human fulfillment of it, but how it exposes our need for God, and his promise of loving reunion for all creation. Redemption is not a slow evolutionary process. It is and it isn't. We are all paradoxically found and lost. At home yet homeless. I am glad
your new direction has humbled you, and I pray that if you feel the need for
Christ’s unconditional grace in your life, you will see he never left you. I
realize this may sound arrogant, but hopefully it is also comforting. In my own attempt to run away
from Christ, this has always brought be back.
Your
Friend,
Jesse
